


The Usual

by Mcwarr



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Cute, Cute Harry, Cute Niall, Fluff, M/M, Narry - Freeform, Punk Harry, Shy Niall, Tiny bit of Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-28
Updated: 2015-05-28
Packaged: 2018-04-01 15:19:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4024858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mcwarr/pseuds/Mcwarr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Niall is a shy barista who is only a little bit scared of the hot punk guy that always flirts with him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Usual

**Author's Note:**

> This story comes from a prompt from my tumblr, feel free to leave any niall-centered prompts there- narrystoranwritings.tumblr.com

Niall was pretty shy. 

It wasn’t _that_ noticeable, honestly. The only reason people even came to that conclusion was the fact that compared to his outlandish and crazy friends, Niall was the stuttering, blushing little angel that constantly apologized for their ways. So, Niall didn’t think much of it. It was just the way he was. He wasn’t the type to send his food back if it was wrong, or stand up for himself if anyone tried to make fun of him. He was the “strong and silent” type. Or– actually, that was more Zayn’s persona. Niall– Niall’s just the shy type. He doesn’t like confronting others and doesn’t like when others confront him.

Which is why he really shouldn’t be working at a Starbucks. He chose the shop because it was small and quaint. He thought that maybe because it was so small and it wasn’t on a busy road, that maybe it wouldn’t be busy. 

He was wrong. 

Today was just like every other day, Niall was busy trying not to fuck up any of the orders that were flying his way as the morning rush came to a close. His hands were shaking when the large crowd finally begins to thin, and he leans heavily against the counter, sharing a look with one of his co-workers, Sophia. 

“You alright, Ni?” She asks with a laugh. 

Niall just smiles and nods, even though he’s kind of freaked out. 

He’s barely had time to catch his breath when _he_ walks in. 

_He_ being that one huge, scary, _really_ attractive guy that comes in every day that Niall works. His name is Harry, just as he tells Niall everyday and Niall is kind of terrified of him. This guy is all skinny jeans and green eyes, tattoos that are rarely all covered, always sporting sleeveless muscle tees or deep v-necks, even though spring has barely begun. Today he has a dark green bandana tied around his hair, which is quiffed up today rather than just wild like usual. He’s got his usual black, ripped up jeans and a white band tee today, making Niall’s inner self shiver. _‘Don’t judge a book by it’s cover.’_ He reminds himself, because this guy, ‘Harry’ has been nothing but kind to Niall in the few weeks that they’ve “known” each other.

In fact, the day they met was a bit of a hard day on Niall. 

* * * *

It was his first day, in fact, and he hadn’t a clue what he was doing. Throughout the day he had given 4 people the wrong orders and it was only getting worse. Niall was handing a man a coffee, holding on super tightly because he definitely was not about to spill this guys’ coffee, when- _splash_ \- yeah, he spilled that guys coffee. Luckily, it wasn’t a particularly hot or cold coffee, but the man’s white shirt was stained with black and his eyes were cold and furious when they looked at Niall. He began screaming at Niall, demanding a refund and to speak with his manager. Niall’s eyes were filling with tears as he tried to apologize, but the guy just wouldn’t let up. 

That’s where Harry comes in.

This big guy, dark clothes and intimidating stature pulls the yelling guy away from Niall’s face, shoving him away violently. “Piss off, you wanker, it was an accident.” He seethes, and even Niall is scared of this guy. 

The man looks half ready to retaliate, when Liam comes out from the back. Liam is the manager and, having heard the noise, came out to deal with the issue. The man gets away from the dark haired boy’s death glare and files a complaint on Niall, which Liam then takes back to his office and shreds it, giving Niall a sorrowful look and a pat on the back.

The intimidating guy, on the other hand, smirks at the man as he walks out of the store, stepping up to Niall’s lane. 

“T-thanks.” Niall says with a small smile on his face, trying his best to look genuinely thankful (because he is) rather than scared.

The curly haired boy just smirks. “No problem, love, always a pleasure to protect the cute blonde boy who’s about to serve me coffee.” He winks, “I’m Harry, by the way.”

Niall just blinks owlishly at Harry, blushing furiously as he looks down. 

If only he knew it was the start of a tradition.

* * * *

Just like every other day, the dark haired boy makes his way to Niall’s register (never anyone else’s) and smirks at the blonde, placing his elbows on the counter in front of him. “You have got to know my usual, by now, right gorgeous?” He drawls, his voice deep and a little bit foreign to Niall ears as he’s been hearing the light mid-Londoner lit all morning. 

Niall tries his best to smile back, but ultimately ends up looking down as he lets out a light giggle. He just nods, and watches as the guy’s smile grows. “M’ Harry by the way.” He tells Niall, just like every other day.

Niall, once again, doesn’t respond, just nods and writes the name on the clear cup, just as he has for the past few weeks. 

“Are you every going to speak to me, lovely Niall?” Harry asks sweetly as Niall passes his cup to Sophia, who winks at him encouragingly. “That is your name, isn’t it?” 

Niall meets Harry’s eyes and nods politely. Harry lets out an exaggerated sigh, holding out his hand expectantly. Niall gives him a questioning look and Harry rolls his eyes. “Sharpie, please.” He commands. 

Niall, skeptical, but obedient, hands the larger boy the marker. Harry grabs both the marker and Niall’s arm, making the blonde gasp in shock. He uncaps the marker, using his mouth to do so. Niall tries not to make a sound as Harry scrawls on Niall’s arm. The blond then watches as Harry pulls the marker away, inspecting his work before releasing Niall’s arm and giving him back the marker. 

Niall grips his own arm, reading the lazy inscription of numbers followed by _“Harry Styles, call me ;)”_ Niall looks up at the curly haired boy, who only winks at him cheekily before grabbing his coffee and making his way to a nearby table. 

Harry sits there for about a half hour, mimicking every other day, reading from some book that Louis read a while back, something about kids with cancer who fall in love. Niall’s too scared to read it because Louis didn’t stop crying for 3 days once he finished it. 

Niall doesn’t miss how Harry’s eyes watch him the entire duration of his stay. He watches Niall as he takes orders and laughs along with his co-workers before leaving with a silent wave paired with a knowing smirk.

* * * *

He doesn’t appreciate the intense questioning he gets from Zayn and Louis after they see the writing on his arm.

Louis just crowed, “Oooh, who’s Harry, Ni?” 

“Do I need to beat him up?” Zayn asks, more than half serious. Niall had his fair share of unwanted admirers before. 

“How big is his dick?”

“Louis!” Zayn calls, eyes narrowed. 

With that, Niall rushes into his room without coming out all night, trying to figure out if he was terrified or attracted to this Harry.

* * * *

The next time Harry comes in, he has a glare on his face. Niall’s usually pretty afraid of Harry, but with this new addition, Niall’s freaked out. He winces as Harry stomps with his combat boots up to Niall’s register and looks Niall straight in the eyes. He doesn’t say anything, doesn’t smile, just stares. Niall gulps, eyes big and apologetic, hoping that his trademark “puppy eyes” will convince Harry to not kill him. 

Harry mouth thins, but within seconds his stance breaks, slumping over with a heavy sigh. “Damn it. Why are you so fucking cute?” 

Niall blushes, fighting off a smile. 

Harry tries to look angry once more, “Why don’t you talk to me? You talk to other costumers!” He says, frown deep on his face. “And- you didn’t call me!” 

A man behind Harry taps him impatiently on his shoulder, “Excuse me, some of us are actually trying to get our coffee rather than get laid.” He spits. Harry’s face screws up in actual disdain and points to the other lane. 

“There’s an empty cue just that way, tosser.” He shoots right back, glaring at him, “This one’s mine, back off.” And Niall isn’t sure if he’s talking about the lane, or the barista. 

Harry turns back, his attention back onto Niall. glances down to see the marker that was on Niall’s arm faded a bit, “And it’s faded! What, trying to get rid of every trace of me?” He demands, obviously genuinely offended. 

Niall giggles lightly, “M’ sorry, Harry, I really am!” 

Harry’s face drops completely a look of awe on his face. “Yes!” He shouts gleefully, “It’s about damn time! And you’re Irish!”

The Irish boy tries to hold back his nervous chuckle. “The usual, Harry?” 

“The usual, yes, Niall, but also for a side, I’d like you to call me. And uh, yep, that’d be it, how much does that side cost?” Niall definitely doesn’t laugh at that, rather deciding to hide his face behind his hands. He asks for the regular cost of the drink, rolling his eyes as Harry says, “Zero pounds, you _are_ easy now aren’t you Ni?”

Niall shakes his head, not sure if he can continue on a conversation much longer. With every word, Harry’s looking a bit more and more intimidating, even though Niall’s not sure why. 

When Niall doesn’t respond to anymore of Harry’s comments, Harry just sighs, grabs out his own marker this time, and writes over the words he had written last time. He doesn’t release Niall until Niall actually meets his eyes this time. “I’m serious.” He says earnestly, before walking out of the shop and getting onto a loud and scary looking bike and speeding away. 

* * * *

Niall didn’t really remember what happened last night. 

That’s new.

Niall wasn’t one to get drunk, in fact, he wasn’t one to go partying at all. He vaguely remembers Louis shoving him through the door, and then maybe being forced into doing about 5000 shots, but that’s about it. When Niall resurfaces from his blacked out bedroom, he lets out a high pitched whine, alerting both Louis and Zayn that he was awake. 

Zayn, the best most beautiful person in the world, took pity on Niall, gathering him up in a hug as Niall whimpered about his head. Louis on the other hand just cackled.

“Ni! You cannot tell me you have a hangover! You downed like, maybe 2 shots.” Louis laughs, much too loudly. “Are you sure you’re Irish?”

Niall glares at Louis, even though he knows it’s true. He had never been able to hold his alcohol. “Louis, be nice to the poor guy.” Zayn says, rubbing Niall’s back soothingly. 

Louis chuckles once more, “You were hammered Niall. Like, there’s even a video somewhere of you and Zayn grinding, it was basically porn.” Louis gushes as Niall’s face reddens. 

Zayn laughs too, nodding in agreement. “Was pretty hot, too bad you were moaning and groaning on about that Harry of yours.” Zayn jokes, rolling his eyes. 

“Harry?” Niall asks, head bolting up painfully. 

“Yeah, you were texting him like all night, bro.” Louis says, disinterested as he pours some cereal for Niall. 

Niall’s eyes widen, running back into his room for his phone. “Oh god.”He whimpers in disdain, praying that he didn’t say anything embarrassing. 

**To: Hary  
Ariiiii babeee **

**From: Hary  
Um, who is this?**

**To: Hary  
s Niall!!!! dumy, you gave me urs numbr**

**From: Hary  
Are you drunk?**

There was then a break in the text, showing that Niall didn’t respond for about ten minutes

**From: Hary  
Niall, can you tell me if you’re in a safe place?**

**To: Hary  
Arii m with Z, so s ok. ur soo hot arriii**

Niall flushed. Fuck.

**From: Hary  
You think so?**

**To: Hary  
I know so ur so so sooo so hot and intimidating an scary and nice and scary nd hot**

**From: Hary  
Scary?**

**To: Hary  
Yep. u scar me a lot. i dont like that.**

Niall currently wants to shoot himself.

**From: Hary  
Is that why you don’t like me?**

**To: Hary  
I like u a lot Ariiii. but i dont wanna go out with a scary person**

**From: Hary  
I think maybe you should go home and sleep, Niall**

**To: Hary  
Arrriiiiii nooooo :( **

**To: Hary  
:( :( :( :( :( **

**To: Hary  
:( arrii **

Niall’s drunken rampage stops there, and Niall is debating falling into a hole and dying of embarrassment. He feels terrible for basically telling Harry that he was terrified of him and because of that, wouldn’t go on a date with him. It wasn’t even completely true. He was terrified of Harry at first, when all he was was a biker boy who liked to flirt with the cute blonde barista. But now he had some sort of depth, he obviously cared about Niall.

Niall sighs heavily, picking up his phone that felt like a brick in his hands. 

**To: Hary  
I’m really sorry about last night. I was pissed drunk, I’m so sorry.**

Niall falls back onto his bed, hating his existence. 

* * * *

Niall works for three days the next week, and Harry doesn’t come in. Sophia asks about it, saying that she was surprised that Harry had missed three whole days. “The only time he doesn’t come is when you don’t work.” And Niall’s heart hurt. 

He could’ve just ruined something great, all because he drunkenly texted like an idiot. Harry never responded to his text, and Niall was heart broken knowing he hurt Harry. Niall’s walking home, just as he does every other day when he nearly walks into someone with a familiarly broad chest. Niall look up, hope filling his eyes until they just widen completely, confusion running through his body. “What.” Is all he says as he looks into green eyes that _used_ to be familiar. 

Harry was there, right in front of him, only… different. His hair was quiffed, but there was no bandana in his hair, he was wearing a light colored, flannel shirt buttoned up with regular blue jeans and loafers. He had thick framed glasses on his nose and a small smile on his face. 

Niall’s face completely dropped, his heart shattering as Harry began to speak. 

“Hi, my name’s Harry Styles and I would like to court you. I just want to let you know that I have a great familial background and a degree in English, and you’re, by far, the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen in my life.” He says, his voice mimicking a more posh, Londoner accent.

There are tears pricking at Niall’s eyes, and he’s shaking his head because this is _not_ what he wanted. Harry notices the tears and his persona drops completely, shaking his own head. “No, no, no, Niall, please don’t cry. I’m so sorry, I’m just- I really really like you but I’ll stop trying I’m so sorr-”

Niall steps into Harry’s personal space, hugging him, hard. “Harry.” He says softly, tears still threatening to fall. “ _I’m so sorry._ ” He whimpers as Harry’s own arms wind around Niall instinctively. “I’m so sorry that I ever made you feel like you had to change for me. Because you don’t, I love your tattoos and your bandanas and I love your skinny jeans and I really really like you too, so yes _of course_ I’ll go on a date with you but only if you dress and act like _you_ want to.” Niall sputters, tightening his arms around Harry’s neck.

Harry’s still shaking his head, but he pulls away from Niall again, a smile on his face. “Say it again.” He demands.

Niall’s face screws up in confusion. “I’m so sorr-” 

“No! The other part.” He says, pulling me closer so his nose is almost touching mine.

“I love your tattoos-”

“No! Well, I like that part too, but the _other_ part.” 

Niall sighs in content as Harry’s warmth gets closer, “Of course I’ll go on a date with you.” 

Harry whoops loudly, breaking the peace of the quiet backstreet, picking Niall up around the waist and spinning him for just a second before backing up a little. Harry backs away for a second, face stretched into a large smile and the blonde wonders for a moment how he was scared of someone so adorable. Harry looks Niall over for a minute before taking the blondes face in his hands and pressing a quick, small kiss to his lips. 

Harry backs off then, “Sorry, just– heat of the moment–”

Niall cuts him off, bringing the taller boy’s neck down to kiss him again, this time more soundly. 

They pull back after a moment and Harry takes Niall’s hand, sighing happily, “Let me walk you home.” He offers, swinging their hands joyfully as they walk down the road. 

And as they go along the road Niall watches as Harry laughs at his own terrible knock knock jokes and coos at small squirrels who run by then. Niall watches as Harry kisses him goodbye on the doorstep of his flat, promising to text the details of their date, and then promptly turning around. “I’ll see you tomorrow then, love.” He calls from the bottom of the stairs. 

Niall nods, “Tomorrow.” He agrees. “The usual?” He asks, jokingly. 

Harry smiles easily and adoringly, nodding along, “The usual.”


End file.
